Protective Effects of Cudrania tricuspidata Against Helicobacter pylori-Induced Inflammation in C57BL/6 Mice

Helicobacter pylori modulates the host inflammatory response, resulting in chronic gastritis, which contributes to gastric cancer pathogenesis. We verified the effect of Cudrania tricuspidata on H. pylori infection by inhibiting H. pylori-induced inflammatory activity. Five-week-old C57BL/6 mice (n = 8) were administered C. tricuspidata leaf extract (10 or 20 mg/kg per day) for 6 weeks. An invasive test (campylobacter-like organism [CLO]) and noninvasive tests (stool antigen test [SAT] and H. pylori antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) were performed to confirm the eradication of H. pylori. To evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of C. tricuspidata, pro-inflammatory cytokines levels and inflammation scores were measured in mouse gastric tissue. C. tricuspidata significantly decreased the CLO score and H. pylori immunoglobulin G antibody optical density levels at both 10 and 20 mg/kg per day doses (P < .05). C. tricuspidata decreased the H. pylori antibody levels in a concentration-dependent manner, increased negative responses to SAT by up to 37.5%, and inhibited the pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL; IL-1β, IL-6, 1L-8, and tumor necrosis factor alpha). C. tricuspidata also relieved gastric erosions and ulcers and significantly reduced the inflammation score (P < .05). We measured rutin in C. tricuspidata extract as a standard for high-performance liquid chromatography. C. tricuspidata leaf extract showed anti-H. pylori activity through the inhibition of inflammation. Our findings suggest that C. tricuspidata leaf extract is potentially an effective functional food material against H. pylori.